A summary of things you should know about Widgets according to Rodd Wagner: Introduction In this episode Rodd Wagner shares an in-depth preview of his book, Widgets, where he discussesRead More
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]]>In this episode Rodd Wagner shares an in-depth preview of his book, Widgets, where he discusses 12 rules for managing employees as if they’re real people.
In his book Wagner provides important and actionable insights into the behavioral drivers of employee engagement – what motivates them, how they think, how they learn, how they act. The goal of the book is to teach you how to use reciprocity as a key motivator in employee performance, adapt new employees to the work environment, and become the best manager you can be.
This book is perfect for entrepreneurs who want to run an organization with a determination to engage, motivate, and positively affect employees as well as people in general.
I think two things make Widgets different. One is that I questioned all the assumptions because so many things had changed. This is not just another engagement book, I really took stock using research, trends, friend’s research, and powerful stories to really help a leader, manager, or entrepreneur understand where we are right now. I think the other thing that makes it different is that I did begin my career as a police reporter so my writing style is not that of a typical business book. I call it as I see it.
I would suggest starting with the first two chapters that lay the foundation but from there if people want to jump around it’s not a problem at all. Actually, in the case of this book, at the very beginning we give the reader a web address where they can take the self-assessment that emerged from the research that was used to write the book.
The most important point that I tell leaders who I am advising is that your employees motivation is in your hands, not because you control them but because people are so reciprocal. I guarantee that if you follow the twelve new rules of engagement they will do for your company what you need them to do.
There are twelve central chapters, one about each of the new rules. And then there are two chapters at the beginning of those twelve rules and two chapters at the end. The first two chapters start by framing human nature and our current situation.
The number one rule is get inside their heads, individualize and understand that person to figure out where they are right now.
The second rule is to make them fearless, don’t freak them out or have them so consumed by what’s going to be happening with the business that they can’t do their job.
Third rule is to make money a non-issue. Make sure that you are paying them competitively and generously so that it takes money off the table and they can concentrate on their jobs.
The fourth rule is to help them thrive. Make sure that what you are doing at the company is not burning them out.
The fifth rule is to be cool. This is not a rule that would have come up ten years ago but people want to work for a cool company and have an enjoyable time at work.
Sixth rule is to be boldly transparent and tell people everything you can possibly tell them. We live in an age of social media and they are going to find out anyway so you should be the one to tell them.
Number seven is to not kill the meaning. People come to your company because there is something about your organization that they already find meaningful.
Number eight is to see their future. We are future oriented people and you need to be as deliberate about where your employees will be in five years as where you want your company to be in five years.
Rule number nine is to magnify their success. Help your employee know when they’ve done a good job. Rule ten is to unite them and set up the conditions where they can be a solid team. Number eleven is let them lead. And the last rule is to take it to extremes.
The second to the last chapter of the book is a cautionary tale about all the dumb things that get done in an employee engagement work and how they can backfire on you.
And the final chapter is about what I call the Profitable Pursuit of Happiness. There are a lot of people in the engagement industry that say don’t make your people happy, just make them engaged by which they really mean shut up and get back to work. This is something employees won’t put up with.
If you want people to work as hard as they can for the company they are going to expect happiness in the bargain. (highlight to share)
NOTE: That was just a summary. To get the full deep dive, play the audio clip at 06:58
“It’s not that corporations are bad and people are good. Corporations are powerful and people are reciprocal. How an enterprise wields its power determines how its employees will deliver.” – Rodd Wagner
I began my career as a newspaper reporter covering police and the courts and so I developed a very direct business writing style. I was frustrated by the way I saw my newspaper at the time being managed and so I went to business school and got a MBA. From there I migrated to a couple research jobs on the business side of media companies and eventually joined Gallup where I was a principle for twelve years. I’ve been a practice leader at BI World Wide for the past three years during which my colleagues and I have been doing the research that lead to the book, Widgets.
The Good Jobs Strategy by Zeynep Ton
Buy Widgets by Rodd Wagner on Amazon today
Visit WidgetsTheBook.com to learn more about Rodd and his book
Follow Rodd Wagner on Twitter
Download the full transcript here (coming soon)
Listen on iTunes, Stitcher , and SoundCloud
Related books:
Make It Matter by Scott Mautz
Managing Whole People by Mark Herbert
The Hidden Leader by Scott Edinger
Relevant advice and tips:
5 Characteristics of A Great Leader
What did you like and not like about this episode? Fill out this one minute survey here.
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]]>A summary of things you should know about Make It Matter according to Scott Mautz: Introduction In the episode Scott Mautz takes a deep dive into his book, Make ItRead More
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]]>In the episode Scott Mautz takes a deep dive into his book, Make It Matter, where he shows you how managers can motivate by creating meaning and personal significance.
In his book Mautz shares years of research, case studies, and techniques in an all-in-one how to guide for energizing, motivating, and encouraging employees to put in the most effort. The goal of the book is to help you add meaning to any organizational mission, find the internal significance of every employee, eliminate negativity from the workplace, and create unique opportunities of personal growth.
This book is perfect for entrepreneurs who run an organization of 5 or more employees and are looking for the best ways to create a work environment that mimic the best places to work.
I am pretty certain that I am the first author to ever put data to the concept that creating meaning at work is a great way to motivate. I also include dozens and dozens of practical tools that you can apply the very minute after you finish reading the book.
I suggest reading it once through and then go back and use it as a reference guide.
If I had to pinpoint one thing it’d be the concept of what I talk about in that book of what I call profound performance. I’ve learned that when you facilitate meaning it not only drives the employees to engage, it takes them beyond engagement to elevate a performance in true fulfillment. There are so many things that can capture an employee’s time and attention very temporarily but meaning holds the engagement of the employees at the deepest and most fulfilling level that sustains over the long haul.
The book is divided into ten chapters.
In the first chapter, Why Meaning Matters, I really paint the case for just that. The truth is that way too many of us feel a lack of true significance and meaning in how we spend our precious hours at work. In this chapter I lay the case out and put hard data to how the creation of meaning can serve as a competitive advantage in what I call compassionate advantage.
I dive into chapter two, The Markers of Meaning, and things get really interesting here because I have found through my research that there are seven distinct markers of meaning that when you intentionally meet them you can drive meaning and fulfillment. The markers are divided into three sections, when you yield a calming and clarifying sense of interdiction, when you create conditions that lead to a satisfying sense of self-discovery and growth, and when you create conditions that engender devotion to ones work at a deeper connection between the employer and employees in a greater good. And I get really specific within that.
In chapter three I start to dig deeply into each marker meaning. This chapter, The potency of Purpose, I walk through very specifically how as a manager you can carve for yourself or carve out for your people a six step path to purpose. If you follow these six steps I can promise you that by the time you’re done you will have identified what you want your purpose at work to be.
I move on to the fourth chapter where I talk about how to leave your legacy behind. This chapter is broken into two pieces and the first part is called the five footprints of legacy. Then I round out this chapter with what I call The Five Step Footpath to Leaving Legacy Worthy Results at Work.
In chapter five I talk about the power of learning and personal growth at work. I spell out seven very specific ways you can craft an environment that’s rich with learning and personal growth.
In Chapter six I talk about the next core marker of meaning and way to create a sense of Significance at work which is to create a meaningful decision making and influence based culture as well. When people feel like they are a part of making decisions it is incredibly motivating and I spell it out as well as eight things you can do to create autonomy as a manager.
Chapter seven moves on to teach you how to create cultures of consequence and those are cultures that are built on a core of caring, authenticity, and teamwork.
In chapter eight we talk about meaning making leadership very specifically. I talk about how as a leader you can create meaning more so than any of your competitors and I go over four traits of meaning making leadership.
In chapter nine I go the other way and talk about cutting off corrosive behaviors or behaviors that can destroy a sense of certainty, confidence, or community.
I round off the book in chapter ten on how to weave all of the concepts together into a meaning making plan and I provide a couple of options for how to do that.
NOTE: That was just a summary. To get the full deep dive, play the audio clip at 05:29
“We are all at a pivotal moment in life; we just may not know it and you have to live as if you did.” – Scott Mautz
I am an author as of March 4th, when Make It Matter hit the streets. I am also a keynotes speaker and have a fulltime job as a director at Procter & Gamble where I run the company’s largest business. And over my 20 plus years at Procter & Gamble I have run a number of different businesses all multimillion dollars in size.
I have been studying the field of motivation for almost a decade and about seven years ago I discovered a stunning statistic that has been proven over and over again. Which is that almost 70% of us may actually be coated as disengaged at work and even if you’ve heard that statistic before, what’s stunning is that is doesn’t get any better. Year after year the data will show you it keeps declining so whatever we are doing to motivate clearly cannot be working. That has been haunting me for the last half dozen years and I really started working hard at trying to find a way to crack this code. I came across this concept that it’s not pay, it’s not perks, and it’s not promotion, it’s really meaning where you can bring significance into your work and make it matter more. That’s what kept me going and was the inspiration behind this book.
Good to Great by Jim Collins
Buy Make It Matter by Scott Mautz on Amazon today
Visit ScottMautz.com to learn more about Scott and his book
Follow Scott Mautz on Facebook and Twitter
Download the full transcript here (coming soon)
Listen on iTunes, Stitcher , and SoundCloud
Related books:
Everybody Paddles by Charles Archer
The Hidden Leader by Scott Edinger
The Best Place to Work by Ron Friedman
What did you like and not like about this episode? Fill out this one minute survey here.
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]]>A summary of things you should know about Everybody Paddles according to Charles Archer: Introduction In this episode Charles Archer takes a deep dive into his book, Everybody Paddles, whereRead More
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]]>In this episode Charles Archer takes a deep dive into his book, Everybody Paddles, where he reveals an effective leader’s blueprint for creating a unified team.
In his book Archer provides a leadership roadmap with problem-solving tools that are designed to remedy the consequences and issues that come with dysfunctional organizations. The goal of the book is to help you develop an organization based on camaraderie, increase engagement between employees, and improve your facilitation skills as a manager.
This book is perfect for entrepreneurs who run a business with 5 or more employees where team work is essential to the business and need a strategic framework that produces highly effective teams.
The one thing that makes my book unique is that I’m a practitioner and not writing a book based on theory but based on practice.
There are six chapters in the book and each can be read individually or collectively.
I would want the reader to go to work and understand the whole principle that everybody matters. You matter regardless of what your position or title is at work.
Upon reading Everybody Paddles the reader will get a practical experience about how leadership works.
The book starts out with a great forward by a very good business leader and friend, Peter. What we’ve done throughout this particular book is after each chapter you will get an experience from another business leader about that particular chapter and principle.
Principle one is Unity Stabilizes the Boat and discuses about what separates us and what brings us together. When you think about stabilizing anything it’s about the acknowledgement of what works and what doesn’t work and a lot of time in business we are a little afraid to discuss the things that cause us to be uncomfortable.
Principle two is The Purpose Provides Propulsion which is about the vision and mission of whatever your business is about. When the people connected to your business understands your vision and purpose then you are able to propel.
Principle three is The Caption Sets the Course and the Whole Crew Paddles. There are a lot of things I love about this book and this is one of the principles I concentrate on the most. Everyone wants to be in leadership but there are only a select few in that club and if you’re not a member of that club you are a contributor and should be paddling.
Principle four has to do with communication and doing it clearly to stay on course.
Principle five is Problem Solving, Course Correction. In my organization we have a rule that you get 60 seconds to tell me about the problem but you can take an hour to discuss the solution. I think when you understand it’s about course correction you will not spend a significant amount of time discussing the problems.
Principle six is Every Crew Member Matters and the whole concept throughout our culture is that there are people who matter and people that don’t matter. Throughout everything I do I create a culture where it’s understood that everybody matters and as a leader you have to find a way to make sure that people understand that.
NOTE: That was just a summary. To get the full deep dive, play the audio clip at 06:47
“I decided to find books that provided realistic guidelines for someone like me or for that matter any executive charged with providing leadership.” – Charles Archer
I’m an attorney by license, I have a masters, I’m a writer, and an advocate for people with developmental disabilities. Twenty years ago I started a nonprofit to help people with disabilities live a productive, fantastic, and fulfilling life. Over the last 20 years we’ve been able to touch people throughout New York City and New Jersey.
Everybody Paddles came out of my ability working in business and all of the things I’ve seen as an attorney and entrepreneur. The one thing that inspired me was that there were people who didn’t want to add value at work. There were people who came to work and because of whatever number of reasons the culture became hostile and wasn’t motivating. I really was inspired to create something unique based on teamwork and team building that really got people understanding that every day at work you must add value.
The Shack by William Paul Young
Buy Everybody Paddles by Charles Archer on Amazon today
Visit EverybodyPaddles.com to learn more about Charles and his book
Follow Charles Archer on Facebook and Twitter
Download the full transcript here (coming soon)
Listen on iTunes, Stitcher , and SoundCloud
Related books:
The Hidden Leader by Scott Edinger
The Culture Engine by S. Chris Edmonds
The Discomfort Zone by Marcia Reynolds
Relevant advice and tips:
5 Characteristics of A Great Leader
What did you like and not like about this episode? Fill out this one minute survey here.
The post A Preview of Everybody Paddles with Charles Archer appeared first on The Entrepreneurs Library.
]]>A summary of things you should know about Happywork according to Chris Reimer: Introduction In this episode Chris Reimer takes a deep dive into his book, Happywork, where he sharesRead More
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]]>In this episode Chris Reimer takes a deep dive into his book, Happywork, where he shares a business parable about the journey to better teamwork, profit, and purpose.
In his book Reimer embraces the everyday unhappiness at work and provides real advice on how to transform any workplace into a motivationally positive environment. The goal of the book is to help you overcome workplace negativity, bring the best out of your employees, streamline your business processes, prioritize your employee tasks, and eliminate human emotions from the workplace.
This book is perfect for entrepreneurs who want to improve their management skills and ensure that their business workplace runs efficiently and effectively in the absence of negative attitudes.
My book is a story and I believe that is how we learn best.
This book is a front to back read.
We too often overlook our own fulfillment and our own happiness at work. I want to enjoy my job and what I do and I don’t think it’s too much to ask.
My story starts with a man named Dick Vunorri who is the second generation owner of a manufacturing company called Vunorri Inc. Dick learns that this company is on the ropes and 30 days away from foreclosure because they can’t pay their bills. And so Dick decides that he is going to call a turnaround specialist named Sam. Sam tells Dick that he needs to tear the place down to the studs to figure out what exactly is wrong with it. From there Sam meets a man named Charlie who is an older man who works in the mailroom but has some wisdom that’s beyond his job title. Charlie comes forth and really challenges Sam which is surprising to Sam. Sam then goes about studying the company and he first encounters the CFO named Neil who isn’t a lot of fun. Neil is not very good at his job but he’s found a way to proverbially lock himself in his office and not get a lot done. After meeting the rest of the team Sam gets to a point where he gets progressively more down each day. Each day he comes on this four week assignment he doesn’t want to be there. As he is interviewing each person in the company to figure out what’s going on he gets a chance to interview Charlie and its then that Charlie turns the table on him and challenges him on everything he knows about business. Sam starts to realize that the thing that this company is missing is team work, productivity, and very few employees that are fulfilling any of their human needs. Through his experience with Vunorri Sam realized that happiness in work is actually very important. Eventually Sam goes back to Dick and gives him the full rundown of why the company isn’t working and what needs to be done to fix it.
NOTE: That was just a summary. To get the full deep dive, play the audio clip at 06:19
“Why use fear and intimidation? Why do you have to scare us? This isn’t a haunted house.” – Chris Reimer
I am based in St. Louis Missouri and I am a Marketing Communication Strategist. Previous to that I spent a little over 15 years as a CPA and CFO of organizations around St. Louis.
This books inspiration came from my own work experiences. I’ve never had a job that was absolutely horrible but I’ve had some pretty colorful job experiences. The other inspiration would be my mother and what she went through working a 30 plus year career for the US government.
The Go-Giver by Bob Burg
Buy Happywork by Chris Reimer on Amazon today
Visit HappyworkBook.com to learn more about the book
Visit ChrisReimer.com to learn more about Chris
Follow Chris Reimer on Facebook and Twitter
Download the full transcript here (coming soon)
Listen on iTunes, Stitcher , and SoundCloud
Related books:
The Best Place to Work by Ron Friedman
The Culture Engine by Chris Edmonds
The Hidden Leader by Scott Edinger
Relevant advice and tips:
5 Steps To Promote Innovation At The Workplace
What did you like and not like about this episode? Fill out this one minute survey here.
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]]>A summary of things you should know about The Hidden Leader according to Scott Edinger: Introduction In this episode Scott Edinger takes a deep dive into his and Laurie Sain’sRead More
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]]>In this episode Scott Edinger takes a deep dive into his and Laurie Sain’s book, The Hidden Leader, where they reveal a unique way to develop greatness within a company.
In their book Edinger and Sain provide a systematic blueprint of a new style of leadership called Reverser Mentoring where senior leaders are mentored by their employees. The goal of the book is to show you how to recognize true leaders within your company, effectively utilize highly talented employees, and build valuable, long-lasting relationships with any employee.
This book is perfect for entrepreneurs who lead their organizations with a creative mindset and are looking for a way to effectively make the most of under-utilized employees.
There are thousands of books on leadership but the majority of them all seem directed at people who are in positions of leadership but there are very little directed at people who are your average citizen.
I designed the book to be read from front to back but if you want to cherry-pick information along the way you can do that too.
I want the reader to know that leadership has nothing to do with position or title; it’s what your actions are.
Hidden leaders look for what the outcome is or how success is defined in any given endeavor and then they figure out how they are going to do something. I am not saying they are renegades to the process but they are willing and able to look for the result that we are seeking and understand it. Another thing I see a lot of from hidden leaders is that they lead through relationships. They can’t boss anyone around or tell people what to do so they are really good at leading through relationships and that does not mean they are the popular person. Usually these hidden leaders have some kind of great technical expertise. They secondly understand the organization broadly and know way more than just their function and are able to knit teams together when they need to get things done. Thirdly, they are able to make a connection with people. The last thing that I wanted to share that I think is the heart of everything is the idea that hidden leaders demonstrate integrity.
NOTE: That was just a summary. To get the full deep dive, play the audio clip at 05:47
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, and become more you are a leader. “ – John Quincy Adams.
Companies like AT&T, Lenovo, and Los Angeles Times hire me to work with their senior leaders. I start with senior leaders because as the senior leaders go so goes the organization. I work with them on creating growth strategies and how to create differentiation in their business as well as how to lead effectively.
A few years ago I was talking with a former colleague of mine and he was telling me about a project he was working on called Reverse Mentoring. The notion here was that instead of senior partners mentoring, the associates would mentor the senior partners. And those senior partners learned a great deal not only about technology but also about client services and some new ways to approach that. I thought that was such an interesting idea and then the next day I read an article about reverse innovation. I ended up thinking about it all when the hidden leader concept was born and then I found my publisher.
High Performance Sales Organizations by Darlene Coker and Ed Gaizo
Buy The Hidden Leader by Scott Edinger and Laurie Sain on Amazon today
Visit EdingerGroup.com to learn more about Scott and his exclusive content
Visit TheHiddenLeader.com to learn more about the book
Follow Scott Edinger on Facebook and Twitter
Download the full transcript here (coming soon)
Listen on iTunes, Stitcher , and SoundCloud
Related books:
The Prosperous Leader by Jacob Engel
The Discomfort Zone by Marcia Reynolds
The Best Place to Work by Ron Friedman
Relevant advice and tips:
5 Characteristics of A Great Leader
What did you like and not like about this episode? Fill out this one minute survey here.
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